The Bear and the Fox
by BlueThistle
Summary: Twins navigate their way to the wall, after witnessing their father's murder at the hands of the Saxons. After just finding each other after six years of seperation, they are not going to allow anything to part them again. TristanOC DagonetOC
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first fanfiction and I would really appreciate any reviews/flames or general opinions! Enjoy!**

**Dedicated to Mary, who insisted I named the charaters after us. You can now see how I really envision you!  
**

**Disclaimer: I only own the characters that obviously do not belong in the motion picture King Arthur. **

Chapter 1

The moon shone like a beacon above the girls' heads as they crouched low to the forest floor in an attempt to remain unseen.

"Stupid bloody light! It's going to get us killed one day!" Mary tried to ignore her sisters harsh whisper in her ear and instead, focused on listening out for any sign of an attack from the surrounding forest.

"Meadhbh, if you cant be silent it will be _your voice that _gets us killed!!" Although Mary disagreed with speaking at all while travelling at night, she needed to make sure her sister shut up for the rest of the dark hours.

Sneaking a quick glance over at her sister's profile, she saw the determined jaw stiffen, but remain silent. Smothering a grin at Meadhbh's obvious bull-headedness, Mary returned to the task at hand. Stopping their progress for a minute, she held up her hand to signal to her sister to halt behind the nearest bush, so they could analyse their current situation.

As she brought up her fist, her action was stopped by a sharp gasp coming from Meadhbh. "What the --" Mary had her mouth clamped shut by the other woman's hand, cutting her off and she was non too happy about it. Ready to retaliate to her sister's childish games, she turned to shoot daggers with her eyes, when she caught Meadhbh's expression.

Her twin sister was completely wide-eyed and her hand had begun to shake against Mary's mouth in fear. Turning to see what she was looking at, she caught sight of a very large intimidating horse, standing next to an equally large and intimidating man, carrying an axe.

Fortunately the man in question had his back to them for the moment. He was fiddling with the numerous pouches that hung off his saddle, he then pulled out a rag and covered it with some sort of cream from one of the cloth bags. Mary quickly tried to form a plan to get them away from him, as silently and as fast as poss ---

A huge _crack_ resounded through the forest, cutting off Mary's inner debate. The twins stiffened and crouched even lower, while discreetly looking around for the source of the noise. The big man, who hadn't even flinched, slowly turned towards them. He had his axe in one hand and the rag in the other. He was _polishing_ his axe! Mary swallowed. Hard.

She closed her eyes shut in fear, hoping that the big man would have mercy and use his axe to end her life quick. But with the thought of leaving her twin behind to be enslaved or worse… Mary opened her eyes again determined to fight. As she began to stir from her space, the hand that was still clamped around her mouth tightened in a subtle warning.

She turned to stare at her sister again, only to discover that her sister had not moved and still stared ahead. Not even a flinch marred her perfectly still position, nothing to give away their hiding place.

"Tris, you are going to need to attempt something a little less obvious if you want to flush out the prey." Mary resisted the urge to run in the opposite direction, away from this huge man with the big body, big voice, big axe… this man left nothing to the imagination.

His booming voice seemed to echo through the empty forest, long after the speaker had silenced himself. Staring in awe at this bear of a man, it briefly occurred to her that she should be attempting to locate this "Tris". Maybe he was a threat. But her mind could not sway from this man cloaked in darkeness. At the promise held in the deep timbre of his voice.

"Well you may not see the prey… But I can smell them." Mary suppressed a groan as this last whisper did not come from her secret bear, but from a darker voice. Whispering directly into her ear.

She had not heard him coming.

With a speed like no other, Meadhbh had jumped up and with dagger in hand, held a predatory stance, standing above her sister protectively. Mary could only blink at the sheer speed in which her sister moved. She had never become used to her twin's ability to fight and as said twin began to snarl like a rabid dog, Mary did all in her power not to laugh at this ridiculous moment. She was a healer! Not an assassin!

She barely resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Bloody typical.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Year Before…**

The river was cold today. The little girl smiled as the water trickled over her bare feet, drifting between her toes. Cooling her sore feet after all that running she did today.

"Mary! Please be careful around the river banks, you know you will only fall in again!" the girl looked over at her mother across the river, laughing at the worried frown held there on her forehead.

"I'm OK mother! See you at dinner!" The girl stood up from her perch on a slimy rock and spun to sprint into the forest.

"Please take the bridge sweet! I wouldn't…" her mother shook her head dejectedly, one day her daughter was going to get into some serious trouble. Then she would be alone again.

She never forgave her husband for leaving her on her own with Mary. Shaking her head of the memories, she went back to her arduous work, allowing one of the other worker women to draw her thoughts away from the past, with some light conversation.

The branches stuck to her clothes and her hair as she ran to the forest as fast as she could. She didn't like taking the bridge because it always made her feel weak, but she knew her mother was truly worried so just this one day she wouldn't return soaking wet from an unexpected tumble into the water.

Mary began to slow as she reached the bridge, visible now in the distance. Spotting some pretty coloured flowers flanking the bridge posts, Mary bent down to pick some to bring home to her mother, before continuing on, on her journey.

The bridge itself was quite old and could only carry one horse at a time. It was more of a secret defence mechanism, to protect her vulnerable village ensconced in the forest that stood directly past the bridge, than a bridge of transport means.

It was built over the river that flowed from high in the mountains, to the low flat land. It was a strange river. It had no fish and it completely by-passed the forest never going near a single tree.

This was the only flaw in the village defence. In order to clean clothes, or simply to get water for everyday needs, one had to leave the safe confines of the tall pine trees and venture out into the open.

So far there had been no attacks or trouble as the village was well hidden and very secret. People simply forgot to worry about leaving the forest anymore. People like her mother, began to move to where the river widens, further out in the open, in order to have more room to do the washing.

Holding the flowers to her chest, Mary turned back towards the spot where her mother sat with the other women of the village, scrubbing dirty clothes. She could hear the laughter and talk of the women, but she could not see them. There was a slight rise in the land that blocked them from her view still Mary turned, satisfied that at least she could still hear them.

She was about to pass the first group of trees when she heard it. There were hoof beats, several getting louder and louder as they approached her.

They were coming from the direction of the village. Mary's blood ran cold. The flowers fell from her hands as Mary wildly pounced onto a tree seeking purchase to propel herself up and out of the vision of the intruders. Grabbing wildly, she had just managed to reach a high enough branch when the first of the horses came into view.

It was a black horse that looked like it was snarling. It stopped just below her tree and began to circle wildly. The rider seemed to move with the horse and seemed to have no trouble keeping his seat. Mary had to admire him a bit for that. Whoever he was.

She could hear other horses approaching but they were still quite far off at this stage. The horse had finally stopped spinning and had come to a complete halt. The rider, staring at something on the ground swung off his mount. Two steps later he knelt down and Mary suppressed a gasp as he picked up the bunch of wildflowers that she had picked for her mother.

They were tied together with the ribbon that she had around her wrist, in the off chance that she would lose the one in her hair. Holding her hands to her mouth, trying to hold back her gasps of fear, Mary could do naught but watch in terror as the man, who had been fingering the ribbon, looked up.

She fell. As soon as he looked up she could see the darkness creeping up around the edges of her vision, as she prevented herself from taking a breath. Soon the blackness took over and she fell into the swirling abyss below.

Mary woke up wrapped in warm blankets, on the back of a horse, moving through an unknown area of forest. That wasn't right. Mary crinkled her brow in confusion. She knew the forest inside and out. This was not her home.

Panic welling up inside of her she began to struggle against the arms that caged her against a hard chest. After a while, she could do nothing but give up as the steel bands showed no signs of relaxing their hold.

As if they were confident that the struggle in her had died, the person behind her spoke.

"Glad you are awake. Gave us quite the fright when you fell. Lucky I caught you, eh?" Mary turned to look up at the source of the voice speaking to her. Staring up at this man, she tried to pinpoint where she had seen him before. He had deep dimples encasing a long thin mouth thst was stretched into an easy smile. He had a full head of dark brown hair that fell to his shoulders in a shaggy mess.

It was then she noticed his eyes. They were the exact shade of green as her own. They crinkled at the edges in humour. Mary failed to see the joke. Who was this familiar face?

Noticing the frustrated expression on her face, the man laughed a deep laugh that vibrated through his chest shaking her insides. "Now lass I am deeply offended that you do not recognise your own father!"

Mary blanched. The struggle in the man's arms increased tenfold and taken off guard, Mary slithered to the ground. Wrapped as she was, she had no way to protect herself from her fall, so she fell flat on her face into the soft mud below.

After the initial shock of the fall left her body, she began to struggle against her blankets, only to fall again as she tripped over the mass gathered at her feet. This time she fell on her arse and instead of fighting anymore, she simply sat there cross legged staring at her knees. Tears blurring her vision. What did they want from her? Taunting her like this?

A hand cut across her vision. An upturned hand was held out for her under her nose. This hand was decidedly feminine and she frowned at that for there were obvious calluses caused only by wielding swords or bows. A hand used to battle.

Deciding her pride had suffered enough of a beating, she accepted the aide offered and was pulled to her feet. But what she saw when she reluctantly looked up to thank the good Samaritan, stopped her dead. A mirror image of herself stared right back at her. At least identical if not for the small scar on her forehead close to the hairline.

Groaning, Mary turned to the nearest bush and vomited, the world turning black once again.


	3. Chapter 3

Meadhbh let out a feral growl as the huge man edged closer to her sister. Crouching low into her stance, she gripped the dagger hard and with her other hand, gently pushed Mary down so that she almost lay flat on the ground.

"We are here to help you. Please put down the dagger and let's talk this through." Meadhbh bared her teeth at the bear of a man who had attempted to inch closer to the twins, as he spoke. Hoping the girl with the dagger was too occupied watching Tristan, Dagonet took one more step towards the girls when the armed one spun on him.

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Tristan pulled out a dagger instinctively against the girl. Although he hadn't moved, Dag could have sworn that he was standing closer to the girls than before. Now the girl and the man were crouched low awaiting one wrong move.

He had to think fast because unlike he, Tristan would have no qualms about simply killing these girls and leaving them right there in the bushes. "Tristan mayhap…" Dagonet closed his mouth. He was being ignored? Well this would not do.

Rubbing a hand over his face in resignation Dag briefly fingered the scar on his face before sighing and throwing his axe to the ground. The sound made the girls jump and now they looked at him. Confusion dotting their brows.

"Could we talk this through for a little while?" he cleared his throat against the rustiness he heard there. Had it really been that long since he formed a sentence?

Placing a small smile on his face, Dag lifted his hands, palm upturned to show his state of vulnerability. "I mean no harm. If you could just put away that dagger, we can light a fire, eat some food and perhaps find out who you are.

Tristan snorted but his stance changed. Still, he would never give up his dagger until hers was well out of her hands. The girl with the knife looked Dag straight in the eyes as if reading him. Then she looked at Tristan and with a nod of her head in his direction, her voice barely above a whisper, "Him first."

Dag pleaded with Tristan with is eyes. Tristan stared hard at the girl who in turn was straightening slowly as if proving she was no longer a threat. Time passed slowly. Dag had no idea how Tristan would act right now. But by the looks of him, it was not going to be good.

Then with a final grunt his dagger was gone, enveloped into one of his many secret sheaths in his armour. Tristan was gone as silently as he had come. He would be back soon. Hopefully with some more rabbits.

Turning back to the girls, they were both standing unarmed against the same bush as before. Stepping closer, he offered them his name. "I am Dagonet, of Arthur's knights, stationed at the Wall." Before he could say any more, the girl who had been lying against the floor during the earlier confrontation let out a gasp she then collapsed against her sister who helped her to sit back down on the ground. "We made it sis, we made it.." Dag could only just make out the whisper as it laughingly came out.

Realising these girls were no longer a threat Dag bent down and offered to help carry the girl. The fighter held her sister close with a frown for a minute then as her twin's sobs became much louder, she nodded and allowed the giant to pick up her sister as if she were a mere pile of clothing.

Dagonet looked down at the person he held. She was clutching his neck and he could feel her wet tears against his skin. Looking closer at her, face he noted the dark circles under eyes. She must be exhausted. With that thought, the bundle in his arms grew more limp by the minute until she was fast asleep curled tight against his chest. Instinct made him hold her closer to his body protectively.

The sister who had been walking close beside him noticed her sister slump. With a movement almost as fast as Tristan, Dagonet had a dagger against his throat, while her other hand moved to her neck, searching. She was checking her pulse! What did she think of him? A monster?

Seemingly happy with the result Meadhbh removed the dagger with equal speed from his neck and waited patiently for him to move onwards. Dag looked down once more at his bundle and decided to attempt conversation with the protective cat.

"So may ask _your_ names?" Dag waited patiently for her reply. He knew Tristan well enough to tell that this girl was not used to conversation. Finally after what seemed like hours of trudging through the forest in silence, Dag received an answer.

"I'm Meadhbh, that is Mary" happy with the short answer, dagonet was ready to proceed with more silence. They were close to their campsite. It wouldn't take long.

"We are twins. Although she can't fight." Dag stumbled. Was she talking to him. Attempting to draw her out he spoke more but slower and much quieter, "I see that you can. What is Mary's talent?"

Speaking her name, Dag couldn't help but look down. She was quite beautiful with pale skin and what looked like dark hair. She had freckles he noticed. Dag had always had a soft spot for girls with freckles on their noses. Meadhbh drew him out of her reverie, "She heals. I protect." The girl then slowed looking up at Dag.

They were identical twins although Dag could note the differences as clear as day. Where Mary was soft, light and seemingly without worries, so fragile, this fighter in front of him looked darker and hard. She had seen much more in her youth than should be allowed of any young girl.

"We must find Arthur." The statement brought forth such vulnerability in her eyes, that Dag stopped short and with a short nod, pushed through the last of the bushes to find Tristan with a fire lit and a pile of skinned rabbits on a rock by the flames.

He glanced up with seeming indifference, but Dag knew he missed nothing. Then his gaze passed Dagonet to rest on Meadhbh. She was looking around taking everything in. Dag was too wary of the body against his chest to note anything strange about the dark scout. Quickly looking for his pallet, Dag lay his delicate beauty upon the soft patch. Chestnut. Her hair was chestnut.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey hope you enjoy this chapter! I think I am finally getting into the plot. But if you have any ideas or queries just review and I will take all your ideas to heart! **

**Thank you for the reviews I have already received, I'm glad people still pay attention to King Arthur. I only wish I could have been there!**

Meadhbh finished her perusal of the camp and the possibility of any attack from outside their circle. Satisfied for now, she moved towards the heat of the fire and sat down on the log that lay there.

She looked over at the knight who so gently placed her sister among his bed. The way he looked at her made Meadhbh sigh in resentment. Upon looking at her twins flawless skin and perfect body she looked down at herself.

Her hands were covered in calluses, her nails were chipped and she had faint scars marring her upper arms. She hated to wear dresses, unlike Mary, who would be seen in nothing but. Meadhbh preferred leather trousers and a tunic, for this allowed her to move freely in battle and everywhere else. Her body weary of years of hard battle training and fighting, was hard to the touch. Her legs were shapely and toned and her abdomen was flat and rock hard.

The only flaw in her physique were her breasts which due to their large size were bound during battle and training. They were bound now, but she had to wait until they reached the safety of the Wall before she could remove her bonds. Looking again over at her sister, she noted her face this time. Her sister was fair, soft and full of smiles and chat. Although identical, anyone who looked close enough would note the differences between these two. Their hair colour, a rich chestnut was identical as were most of their features. But it was the eyes that gave them away most of the time. While Mary had rich amber eyes, her eyes were a deep forest green. They had rare eye colours both from each parent. It was their eye colour that determined which parent the child stayed with. Mary with their mother, she, with her father.

Shaking her head from her thoughts, Meadhbh turned back to gaze into the flames. A movement in the corner of her eye, made her look at the man opposite her over the flames. "Tristan" Dagonet had called him. She was very curious about him but understood that like her, he wasn't really up for idle chatter. He spoke when necessary and only then. She, although spoke at rare occasions, found herself having conversations with her sister on their journey, without even realising how Mary had managed to coerce her to do it.

Smiling slightly, she focused back to the present and jumped when she realised she had been staring at Tristan during her daydream. Now a cool pair of dark brown eyes stared back at her from the veil of his shaggy hair that hung down over his brow. Since she already been caught looking, Meadhbh decided this was the best time to look at the dark face of the quiet knight. He had dark eyes set deep into his head and high cheekbones that had identical twin tribal tattoos of some sort on each. His mouth was wide with thin lips that moved as he chewed the apple he had been cutting up since they had arrived. Meadhbh's mouth watered she could not remember the last time she ate, and the way the knight before seemed to savour his precious apple, made Meadhbh very wary of her hunger. Licking her lips, she tore her eyes from the juicy apple, and returned her gaze to Tristan's eyes.

They still stared straight at her. Although this time instead of the hostile glare from before there was an amused curiosity that lined his face. There was no smile, oh no Meadhbh knew that this man lacked the muscles to achieve such a small emotion. But this man's eyes clearly laughed at her current predicament. Letting out a gust of frustrated air through her nose, Meadhbh stared back into the flames hoping that they would cook the rabbits soon. Or at least feed them a morsel of their bounty. Meadhbh began to worry that perhaps they did not mean to feed them at all. Oh she could manage, but her sister, so used to the luxury of eating any time during the day, may not handle the problem so well. She looked back over at her slumbering twin. The hardships from their journey smoothed away from her features, like water washing the blood off one's hands. No. Her sister would not handle the thought of no food very well.

Turning to beg for some sort of sustenance on her sister's behalf, she instead found herself looking straight into someone's chest. A very broad and very strong chest. Following the stitching up towards the man's face, she found herself staring straight into Tristan's eyes. He was very close. He held out his hand to her. It took Meadhbh quite a while to realise he was offering something. Looking down, she held out her own hand only to find two very shiny, very delicious apples sitting in her palm. When she looked back up, the knight had sat back down and resumed the task of finishing his apple. Dag kneeled next to him spitting the rabbits to roast them. But Meadhbh could only focus on the scent the quiet knight left behind. He smelled of earth and man.

Shaking herself out of her very strange thoughts, Meadhbh stood up, turning to aide her sister in eating at least a full apple before the rabbit was cooked. Glancing back at Tristan Meadhbh spun on her heel towards her sisters bed. Very strange thoughts indeed.

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Tristan watched as Meadhbh knelt down next to her twin waking her from her exhausted state. He snorted to himself, they may call themselves twins but one could clearly tell the monumental difference between them. He found it difficult to tear his eyes from the warrior girl. She was very interesting indeed. The way she defended her sister with her battle stance and snarl. Tristan was just glad that she did not notice that in her crouched position, one had a very nice view down the top of her tunic. Her breasts had been bound tight but that did not hide the substantial cleavage that peeked out from the top of her bonds. Very nice indeed.

"Have you ogled enough Tristan? Mayhap you could help me here with these rabbits, we'll be eating in no time if you would only get off your lazy ass!" Dagonet's quiet rumbling voice slapped Tristan's senses like a woman scorned. What was wrong with him. Wenches were naught but trouble. He should remember that when next confronted with this delicious morsel in from of him. Licking his lips, Tristan turned to Dag with a grunt and helped to spit the rabbits.

Although there was little meat on the rabbits, everyone had satiated their hunger thanks to the numerous rabbits Tristan had managed to hunt. Throwing the last of the sticks into the fire, the womanly twin patted her stomach with a moan of contentment. Tristan could feel Dag stiffen next to him. He smiled. On the inside, but smiled nontheless at his brother's obvious infatuation.

"Tristan, Dagonet, may I just say thank you so much for that. I don't think I have eaten so well since I left my village nearly four days ago." she sighed again. "I was afraid I would have perished if I had to wait any longer!" laughing she nudged her sister to share in the joke. Meadhbh allowed an indulgent smile for her sister. They were obviously very close.

Mary stood up and walked over to the Knights on the other side of the fire, leaving a very confused Meadhbh behind. Holding out her hand, she offered Dagonet an offer of greeting first, " Dagonet, I fear it was very rude of me not to introduce myself before I ate, but I could not have waited a minute more! My name is Mary, and that," She nodded her head in the direction of her sister, "is my sister Meadhbh." Leaning in to whisper mock conspiracy into Dagonet's ear she laughingly told him that "although you may want to chat the world away, the only answer you will get from her is a grunt or maybe, if you are lucky, a yes, or a no!" She laughed again, her eyes twinkling at Dagonet awaiting his response.

It took his brother a minute to respond but eventually, Dag reached out and grasped her hand again slipping a small grin in Tristan's direction, "I fear it is the same with our scout over here, except the only word you will get from him is no!" The two then began to laugh over the most ridiculous joke. Recovering, Mary finally made her way to Tristan. He tried hard not to flinch from her nearness and succeeded well until she grasped his hand that lay on his stomach as he sprawled on the floor.

"Tristan, scout, thank you for not killing my sister, I was very much afraid that you would have pounced if we had stood there one moment longer!" ignoring the obvious offended noise from her sister's direction, Mary leaned back to gage his reaction. Tristan stayed silent for a while until Mary, smile fading, made to leave. He tightened his hand and pulled her close. "I'm sorry milady, but you weren't standing."

It took a good ten minutes until Mary's bellows of laughter faded to silent gasps of air. Dagonet stood up and offering his arm led the still giggling Mary, back to his pallet. "As much as I would love to stay and chat with you, I fear you must get some much needed sleep, as we will have an early start back to the Wall tomorrow." Dagonet finished his sentence as he gently pushed Mary down onto his pallet. "You and your sister may take our beds," he cleared his throat to cover Tristan's snort of disgust, "It will not be the first time we have slept on the forest floor after all." smiling Mary only nodded at the giant as sleep overtook her again.

Pulling a fur from his pack, Dag touched the woman's hair then quickly stood up and faced the remaining group. "I shall check on the horses and secure them for the night." With that, the man left the cosy warmth of the circle to find their mounts.

Meadhbh remained as she was, staring into the fire. Tristan began to move and she watched under the cover of her lashes to see the scout unfold himself from his position on the floor, to stand. Stretching, Meadhbh could only imagine all his sinewy muscles bunching and flexing as he pulled them tight. Dropping his arms, Tristan began to pick up his pallet and bring them to her, when she stopped him. "Please, you sleep I would prefer to take the first watch anyway." Tristan stared at her for a moment before dropping his bundle to the ground, to start moving towards her. "We'll share." Came his throaty reply. Affronted that he would even assume such, and perhaps maybe more than a little excited at the idea, Meadhbh held up a hand stopping his advance. "I have no idea what you make of me, sir knight, but I am not one to share a bed with anyone that I meet!" Tristan smiled a ghost of a smile at her, "No, I imagine you wouldn't. As much as _that_ idea is delightful in it's own right, I meant I would share watch with you."

Meadhbh had never gone so red. She could feel her blush creep up her neck and up to her hairline. Of course he did not mean share her bed. Why would he? Thoroughly embarrassed, both at the accusation and maybe because there was a little arousal still stirring within her, she turned to fiddle with her pack on the floor. Of course that wasn't what he meant. Look at her she was hideous. Stealing a glance at her sister she sighed mournfully. She could place a bet now that her sister would be the object of every man's desire at the camp.

Sighing once, more, Meadhbh stood up and turned. Only to find Tristan staring intently at her face. She shut her eyes against a wave of fresh arousal that hit her and she did all she could, to stop her knees from buckling under the power if it. He stepped closer, so close that she could smell him again. He leaned in and breathed in deeply causing her to open eyes in shock. Looking up at his eyes again she saw his, dark and… was that arousal too? Swaying closer to him she could feel the heat of his lips as they neared hers. She licked her own to wet them causing Tristan to growl, when a scream rent through the air…

**A/N Meadhbh is pronounced "Mave" sorry if people had a problem with this. It's my name and even people here in Ireland can't pronounce the Irish spelling! Enjoy!**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Apologies to all those who got confused about the twins' eye colours. What I meant in chapter 2, was that Mary remembered Meadhbh's eye colour from childhood! Sorry I did not make that more clear! Enjoy the rest though!**_

_Meadhbh and Tristan jumped apart, as if scalded. They both looked over to the source of the scream and saw Mary being held tight against a painted man's chest. The man had a wild look in his eyes and the dagger being held at Mary's throat, began to shake with terrifying force. Meadhbh could hear the sound of Tristan sliding a dagger from under his surcoat, but when she made a quick glance in his direction, she could swear he had not moved. _

_Turning back to Mary, Meadhbh could feel the anger and fear for her sister, quickly bubble to the surface. The look of absolute terror on Mary's face, made Meadhbh snarl in response. She knew her twin was not yet ready for this type of assault and Meadhbh could only try to focus as hundreds of thoughts flew through her head. _

"_Meadhbh please! Help me…" Shutting her eyes against the onslaught of memories from her past, she opened her eyes and found herself absolutely powerless to this type of fear. Looking over at Tristan, she made a silent plea with her eyes that she hoped the quiet knight would be able to decipher. He looked over at her and the look of calm and patience on his face, only made Meadhbh's ire worse. _

_Suddenly a high pitch scream filled the air, leaving Meadhbh able to do nothing as she watched her sister fall to the ground. Frozen, she could only watch as the painted man was left standing in his exact position, with his face frozen into a look of surprise. It took only moments to realise that there was a void where his hand had been leaving a gigantic axe placed firmly in his left breast. The man fell backwards like a tree felled into the rough behind him. Leaving only Dag standing there, chest heaving and a look of absolute hatred shadowing his normally placid face. He ran to where Mary was now attempting to sit up and sweeping her into his arms, he moved to the log and sat down, holding her close to his chest and stroking her hair. He soothed her as she sobbed into the safety of his tunic. Dag looked so concerned and with one last hated glance at the blue man, he turned back to the object of his tumultuous emotions, rocking her like a babe and whispering words of encouragement into her hair. _

_Meadhbh felt the world begin to spin around her and she began to fall to the ground. Only she never made it. Instead she was held up against a hard chest and imitating Dagonet, Tristan swept her up and sat on the floor holding her close, as she gasped for air. She had never felt so terrible in her life. She had sworn to herself and to her father in his last breaths, that she would protect her only sister, her twin, as she was so much stronger than she. Yet when she saw the look on Mary's face as she was held at knifepoint, Meadhbh was rendered useless. Fear holding her against her will, in an invisible prison. It was then, against this stranger's chest that she began to cry for the first time since she was a small girl. Nine years of bottled up emotion welled forth like a river bursting it's banks in a flood. She sobbed and cried for what seemed like hours. Yet this man, this seemingly empty hearted man, held her tightly and whispered into her ear, while rocking her in a silent lullaby. _

_The hours passed and when Meadhbh felt that the anvil on her chest had eased somewhat, the past event came back to haunt her. Pulling herself away from her temporary haven against this man's chest, she looked over to where Mary had sat with Dag. Only to discover that she was gone. In a panic, she looked wildly around the camp, her heartbeat accelerating more until she saw her. Lying down in a pallet fast asleep. The look of fear was smoothed from Mary's perfect face yet there were shadows present that had not been there before. Meadhbh gently pushed against Tristan's chest in a plea to be released. He looked down at her and with one more sweep of his hand over her hair, he let her go. Meadhbh stood up and walked over to her sister. She lay down and held her twin close, closing her eyes, while Tristan pulled a fur from his pack and placed it over the now slumbering women. _

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_Straightening, Tristan rubbed a hand over his face and turned to join Dag in his position by the now dying embers of the fire. They sat in silence for minutes, neither of the men desiring much conversation at that present time. Finally, Tristan threw in the piece of wood he had been whittling and turned to his brother in arms. "I think we should let them sleep off as much of their ordeal as possible." Dag looked up from the cage of his hands and looked at Tristan pensively. After a moment he replied gruffly, "You know, I think we are in way over our heads." acknowledging Tristan's grunt, he looked back into the spitting embers and sighed. "Maybe if we don't spend too much time around them we might be OK. We know they will be safe inside the Wall." Stealing another glance at the mound that held their women, he fingered his scar absently in thought. "I don't think I have ever been so afraid in my life. I could have missed… I could have…" Tristan did his best to ignore his normally passive brother's surge of raw emotion. Dag had already lost one love years before and he could only imagine what the thought of losing another potential mate, could do to a man like him. _

_Tristan stared at the place where Meadhbh lay. He had almost kissed her. He was no virgin or stranger to these kind of emotions, but he had never felt them himself. He had only seen his brothers fall into what had seemed like utter vulnerability. But now… He dropped his head to his chest. "I will take first watch, you sleep. One of us will have to be fully alert for tomorrow's ride. If they attack here, there will likely be more, closer to the fort." Dag nodded to the scout and lay down close to the girls in a protective position. Tristan shook his head again and moved to the outskirts of the camp. He sat against a tree and removing any emotions lingering, forced himself to concentrate on the sounds of the forest around him. Yet his thoughts kept lingering back to the smell of her hair, the look on her face as he leant in close and the ultimate look of pain in her eyes as he silently did nothing to help her sister. Unlike she, Tristan had seen Dag coming and knew he would have a better shot with the Woad. But how to explain that to her? He sighed again. It was going to be a long night. But when he saw the first glimmers of dawn on the sky above he allowed a smile to grace his lips. Maybe not so long. _

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_Meadhbh awoke to the sound of humming and movement around the camp. As she groggily awoke from the slumber she had so soundly slept in, she brushed her hair out of her eyes, only to be greeted by her sister laying across from her smiling and looking very awake. Then the ordeal of last night came flying back to her. She sat up quickly and grabbed her sister close. "Oh Mary I'm so sorry, please forgive me I couldn't help you, I swear I tried but then you fell and he… and then I…" At the sound of her sister's soft chuckle, Meadhbh looked into the face she knew so well. The confused look on her face must have shown for Mary just laughed again and held Meadhbh's face in her hands. "Meadhbh it's fine Dag saved me! You were scared and that is perfectly normal. I was scared too! All is well now and I was told that we would be at the Wall by late this afternoon! How great is that!?" Meadhbh could only look in shock at her sister as she rambled on and on. She didn't blame her? How could that be? She was sworn to protect her and what did she do? Nothing! _

_Her sister smiled again, and stood from the pallet towards the fresh flames of a new fire where something very delicious was cooking. Meadhbh's stomach rumbled and she held her hands there in an attempt to quieten it. Still dazed, she stood up to approach the fire where Mary stood laughing up at Dag, who smiled indulgently back at her. She then swatted his chest and the deep rumble from Dag's chest grew louder, along with the wide smile on his face. Meadhbh just watched the two as they interacted and felt a sharp pain in her chest as she recognised the one thing that she would never have. _

_Picking up some firewood, she moved to the fire and threw them on, hoping someone would give her something to do. Quickly. When another presence entered the camp, Meadhbh stiffened as she remembered the look on Tristan's face as he practically slapped her with the refusal to help her sister. Then she remembered crying, and the almost kiss and her face flamed red again for the second time in hours. She never blushed. For it was looked down upon if a warrior blushed for any other reason than a serious infection from a wound. Meadhbh's wound was not visible, but she feared the infection could be deadly. Straightening her back she turned slowly to confront the object of her confusion. _

_He stood holding the reins of two mighty war horses and was staring right at her. His eyes seemed to search her face and what he saw there caused a flicker of pain to cross his features, but it was quickly replaced with the look of impassivity that he mastered so well. Meadhbh only became more confused. He broke the smothering tension first. "I think we should leave now. The sooner we leave, the quicker we will arrive at the wall." He seemed to be determined not to look at her, as he addressed the clearly smitten pair by the fire. "But Tris," her sister began to complain, "We just made food! Why don't we leave after we eat?" Dag registered Tristan's impatience to leave and taking Mary's hand he kissed her knuckles before quietly compromising "Why don't we take this delicious meal with us on the journey we could make a….picnic out of it." Once again, Dag had to cut off Tristan's mocking snort before waiting for Mary's reply. Her twin's face lit up with joy that Meadhbh could not remember ever feeling herself and when Mary clapped her hands together in glee, Meadhbh knew that her sister had fallen. Hard._


	6. Chapter 6

_**Sorry about the delay guys, unfortunately internet is not as stable in the country as I had hoped! Well it's back now! Also, if anyone has any questions or ideas they would like me to consider, or even just some general advice I would be very happy to hear it! Just review!**_

_**Enjoy!**_

_Mary looked over to where Meadhbh was standing, defiantly refusing to get up onto Tristan's horse. She, on the other hand, was happily snuggled against Dag, with his Iron arm wrapped securely around her waist. She sighed in bliss before turning around to the man of her dreams, "Sir Dagonet, I think I should go help Tristan slap some sense into my ridiculous sister!" smiling up at him, she noticed that he seemed less than inclined to let her go now that she was seated in front of him. She smiled again. "It will take two minutes, for I have more than enough experience with petulant children!" nodding in agreement, Dagonet moved his horse to where Tristan and Meadhbh stood staring each other down. Mary, with the help of Dagonet, slithered to the ground._

"_Now now Meadhbh, what is going on?" She approached her sister carefully and laid a hand on her arm. Her twin stiffened, but did not move from her spot. "Look I will be riding with Dag, why cant you just spend a couple of hours on Tristan's saddle?" Meadhbh finally turned and looked into Mary's eyes, with haunted fear. "I can't, because…. I'm terrified of horses.." Mary's eyes widened with her sister's raw confession. "But I don't understand" Mary began, "I've seen you near horses. I must have seen you riding one?!" .Meadhbh looked away then and instead of her usual bravado, she stared at her scuffed boots. "I always rode in the cart… Father never forced me to ride, even though it probably would have benefited everyone if I had just gotten over my silly childish fears…I'm sorry, but you can leave me behind and I can walk the rest. I made it this far, I can make the rest alone." Her voice was barely a whisper and Mary was struck dumb, unable to comfort her in any way. _

_After a moment of shocked silence, a hand took Meadhbh's and led her slowly to the horse. She looked down expecting her sister's dainty hand to be encased in her own ragged one. What she saw though, made her heard give a few extra thumps. A mighty warrior's hand, had hers wrapped firmly inside of his. Her hand practically disappeared into the warm depths of the tanned skin and she looked up at the owner. Tristan was leading her very slowly to his horse. He was walking backwards never taking his eyes off her face. She began to protest, but he just rubbed a thumb over the back of her hand, looking at her with imploring eyes. Meadhbh swallowed. And allowed herself to be led towards this frightening creature. For some reason she trusted Tristan not to be malicious, she felt a bigger connection with this practical stranger than she did with her own twin sister. _

_After fifteen minutes of Tristan silently persuading Meadhbh to give the horse a chance, Mary found herself once again in Dag's arms, while her sister found herself in Tristan's. But where Mary was taking this opportunity to be as close to this man as she could, Meadhbh was hanging on for dear life, her knuckles white as her hands held onto Tristan's forearm and the pommel. She seemed to be taking it well, mused Mary. Now if she would only open her eyes, she would be able to overcome her fear. Although, when the blacksmith's son, tried to cure her fear of spiders… Mary shuddered. Maybe Meadhbh needed a little more time. She twisted in her seat looking away from the two that lagged behind and leaned a little closer to Dag's chest. "This should be killing Tristan… going this slow… but he seems to be taking it better than I ever could have imagined." Dag's innocent observation made Mary smile. Of course Tristan didn't mind. Her smile grew calculating. Oh yes. Forming plans in her mind she turned to look up at Dag. "They won't know what hit them!"_

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_Meadhbh was extremely proud of herself. So far she had managed to get up on the horse and not only was she in Tristan's arms, but they were currently cantering across an open portion of land. Dag had come alongside at one stage and said that once they had reached the top of the hill, they would be able to see the wall. But this meant that the horses had to ride upwards and as the horse went up, Meadhbh went back. Harder in to Tristan's chest. She swallowed. This whole journey had been one big pit of roiling emotions. She was practically sitting on his lap and every time their hips moved with the horse's movements, they would grind against each other. She began to feel a liquid heat building low in her belly and she knew that once she got off this horse, she would have lost the use of her legs. She turned to look up at Tristan, hoping maybe he was feeling all this too, but he refused to meet her eyes. He stared straight ahead with a look of pure anger on his face. Since then she had been trying hard to avoid touching him, and with her pride battered this much in one day, she spent the rest of the trip up the hill trying to hold back the tears that for the second time in her life, tried to come forth in a single day. _

_They reached the top of the hill and what greeted them made the twins gasp in awe. They had finally reached their destination. This is where their father had ordered them to flee to if he should die. Two hours later, the twins watched as their father fell to Saxon swords. Mary was visibly trying to hold on to her composure, and Meadhbh could feel an unbelievable weight lifting off her shoulders. She sagged back against Tristan's chest, for once happy that someone so strong was holding her in a way that was alien to her own father. His arm tightened around her waist and she gripped his wrist as it curled around her ribcage, squeezing it in a silent thanks. Closing her eyes at the feeling of being free, she turned her face towards the sun. For the first time in many years, Meadhbh smiled a full, happy smile. _

_They stopped at the top of the hill to distribute the food to the riders. It would take another few hours to reach the wall, so Mary had put her foot down ordering about the beginning of her picnic. Tristan had growled like an unruly bear and glared at Dag on his horse. Finally, Dag came up with the idea to have a moving picnic. With many grumblings and a great show of obvious disappointment, Mary finally acquiesced and began to separate the portions to give out. Meadhbh reached out and grabbed both meals for her and Tristan as he seemed disinclined to let go of her or the horse. Meadhbh began to wonder if he would want her to feed him too. She shuddered with promise. Maybe she could force him to eat from her fingers. Meadhbh shook her head. Where had that thought come from? _

_Tristan had, at this point, nearly expired from the efforts preventing himself from turning his horse, galloping into the woods then laying Meadhbh down and… he inwardly shook himself out of his own musings. Maybe this is why his brothers talked so much. Did they always have a need to distract them from their baser urges. He looked down at the source of his troubles. Every time she moved that elusive scent that he just could not name would flow up into his nostrils from her fragrant hair. She was really a beauty. Someone real who had seen the world. The evil side at least. As the horse stumbled over a loose rock, Tristan's hips were thrust once again into Meadhbh's rather tempting buttocks. He clenched his jaw as he felt all the blood rush to his now already towering erection. He looked down at her with lowered lids and tilted his head in thought. Maybe I could make her feed me the food from those tempting fingers. Then when she was done he could get her to use her fingers on a far bigger problem than his hunger. Eyes widening, he choked on his own breath. What was becoming of him? He could not risk thinking this way while he was a scout. Frowning he decided that when he got back to the wall, he would distance himself from her for the rest of her stay. Looking down at his very obvious problem, he twisted his lips wryly. Maybe he would visit one of the tavern wenches tonight to rid him of his new constant companion. _

_Taking a deep breath, he felt Meadhbh shift in response. He leaned forward ever so slightly, and watched how she ate. The way her jaw moved and her throat worked as she chewed and swallowed. Her mouth was unbelievably tempting. Imagine what could be done with those lips open and… he mentally shook himself again. No, he would not be able to be around her for much longer. He had a rule against virgins. He was a rough man, who often lost control in the throes of sex, and he would not risk hurting this small person. Well, she must be a virgin, for she had no idea what the hardness digging into her behind was. Or at least she made no obvious show of it. Ok, he would admit to himself that those gasps and small whimpers were not the kind one made when afraid. Everytime he ground against her, she would gasp or make some other delightful noise that made Tristan want to explode. He pulsed in response to his thoughts. Time to change his musings. Looking around, he found himself becoming more and more aware of his hunger. Looking at the small bundle in Meadhbh's hands he tried to think of the best way to get the food. With a sly grin Tristan decided that a wolf was allowed to play once in a while. He leant forwards so his chin almost rested on her shoulder. _

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_Meadhbh stiffened as she felt Tristan's beard graze the side of her neck, as he leant forward. His right hand that held the reins of the horse, pushed them into her own. Hand free of the ropes, he brought his hand to her lap where the food was resting and began fishing through the fabric, for his lunch. He picked out a large chunk of bread and holding against her left hand, she took hold of it so that he could tear off a sizeable chunk to put in his mouth. Meadhbh found herself extremely aware of Tristan. From the fact that he gave her the reins instead of taking his arm from her waist, the way he ate and the delicious way his chest moved as he swallowed. He continued to pick at the selection of rabbit, bread and a piece of cheese that Dag had found in his saddlebag. He ate almost everything, seeming oblivious to the way Meadhbh was sitting in front of him practically melting into his embrace. When all that was left was a few pieces of rabbit meat, he opened the fabric wide displaying it openly as if offering it to someone. Meadhbh hoped it wasn't her because at the way her belly was heating up, she was too afraid to eat more. Her thoughts were interrupted when a loud whistle pierced the air. It had come from Tristan and her ears were still ringing when the whistling stopped. She maintained her death grip on the reins however, praying that Tristan planned to take them back soon. The way this horse chomped at the metal piece in his mouth and pulled at the reins was making Meadhbh nervous. _

_There was a cry that caused all four of the travellers to turn and look up at the sky. A large bird was seemingly floating towards them gliding at a downward angle. Tristan raised his right arm with a piece of meat held between his forefinger and thumb and Meadhbh watched in complete awe as the bird swooped down and landed neatly onto Tristan's arms. "Meadhbh," his deep voice played with her senses as he addressed her. "I would like you to meet the most intelligent thing in my acquaintance. Intelligent Thing, meet Meadhbh." _


End file.
